This specification relates to providing remote access to components and controls of a wireless communication device external to the housing in which the wireless communication device is enclosed.
With the proliferation of wireless technology, wireless control systems are increasingly being used in numerous and varied applications (e.g., wireless lighting control systems, power distributions systems, etc.). In many applications, the devices being controlled have (or are in) housings or enclosures. Wireless control systems for these applications often require that a wireless controller be placed within the device being controlled (e.g., within the housing or enclosure of the device being controlled). One such device is a lighting fixture, which typically has a ballast for a fluorescent lighting fixture, a driver for an LED lighting fixture, or a striker for an HID lighting fixture. Wirelessly enabling these types of devices generally involves introducing a wireless controller into the lighting fixture housing and then connecting the ballast/driver/striker to the wireless controller so the wireless control system can monitor and control the lighting fixture. In other applications, wirelessly enabling the lighting fixture involves integrating the wireless controller functionality into the ballast/driver/striker, in which case, the wireless controller is a wireless ballast/driver/striker. However, in either case, the device is within the housing.
By way of another example, the housing can be a junction box connected to a circuit or a fixture and the junction box has, within it, a wireless controller capable of turning the circuit on or off, or otherwise controlling the circuit via circuit wiring that passes through the junction box.
The operation and effectiveness of wireless controllers are dependent on numerous factors. For example, these factors include the ability to send and receive radio signals (e.g., wireless communications) despite being placed within a housing; to permit ready access to at least one button, switch or other stimulating device to cause the wireless controller to perform an action (e.g., to reset to a factory-default state or to change an operational setting); or to provide visual feedback indicating the state or health of the wireless controller (e.g., through an LED).
The operation and effectiveness of wireless controllers can be diminished by placing the wireless controllers within a housing. Some housings are made of metal (e.g., such as from an aluminum extrusion), and therefore substantially attenuate or sometimes completely prevent the propagation of radio signals into and out of the fixture. This, in turn, prevents the wireless control of devices within the fixture. In most cases, housings prevent access to stimulating devices on the wireless controller, as the wireless controller resides within the housing. Furthermore, any visual feedback mechanism available on the wireless controller is blocked in most housings, as the housings likely do not provide the necessary transparency to allow viewing of the visual feedback mechanism through the housing.
Another issue that must be considered when using wireless controllers in housings is the numerous types of housing designs available (e.g., lighting fixture types include 2×4 troffers, downlights, outdoor lights, parking garages lights, etc.). Because of the various types of housings, wireless controllers are typically designed to accommodate as many different housing types as possible and, as a result, it is difficult to provide the means to connect or extend antenna wires (or antenna jacks), stimulating devices and/or visual indicators from the wireless controller out of the housing so that they are readily accessible without the need to open or disassemble the housing, which can be challenging and time consuming.